Formation Processes, Fertility, Spatial Extent, and Carbon Content of Anthropogenic Soils in the Upper Xingu, Southern Amazon

Summary

This is an abstract from the "Archaeology in the Xingu River Basin: Long-Term Histories, Current Threats, and Future Perspectives" session, at the 86th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

Recent research in the Upper Xingu carried out in partnership with the indigenous Kuikuro community (Associação Indígena Kuikuro do Alto Xingu; AIKAX) has revealed that modified soils associated with archaeological remains and possibly with ancient cultivation areas may be much more extensive than previously thought. We are working to determine the fertility, carbon content, and overall spatial extent of these soils in the region. Ethnographic research with Kuikuro farmers has revealed the intentionality inherent in the formation of fertile dark earth soils (*terra preta) around contemporary villages as well as the importance of ancient dark earth sites. Remote sensing and artificial intelligence will allow us to extend our ground-truth data to a wider area to estimate overall extents of modified soils. Combining ethnographic, archaeological, microbotanical, environmental, and satellite data will allow more robust interpretations of land use in the past that resulted in the creation of anthropogenic soils.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 86th Annual Meeting, Online (2021)   •
• Archaeology in the Xingu River Basin: Long-Term Histories, Current Threats, and Future Perspectives

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 33425